Child of a Dead God

By Barb & J.C. Hendee

Magiere is being plagued by dreams about a castle high in the mountains. Inside that castle is a mysterious and powerful orb. In the dreams, Magiere is commanded to go and get the orb, but for what purpose is not revealed. Unable to shake these dreams, Magiere feels compelled to hunt for that distant, high castle and its ancient orb.
Traveling with Magiere is her lover, Leesil and her friends Wynn, a sage and Chap, a big furry dog who isn't really a dog. Also coming on the trek is the elf Sgäile, who has sworn to protect Magiere. But Magiere and company aren't the only ones who want the orb. The elves want the orb too and, worse, Magiere's half brother, the vampire Welstiel, is desperate to obtain the orb. So, trailed by enemies, Magiere and friends set off on their journey to fulfill Magiere's obsession.

Billed as a "Novel of the Nobel Dead," Child of a Dead God is one in the series of the "Nobel Dead Saga." Reading the previous novels in the series would be helpful before reading this one. I was not familiar with the series before coming across this book. Based on this novel, I probably will not be looking for the other books in the series.
This is not to say that the book was a bad read. It wasn't. It just wasn't that interesting to me. Magiere's trek to the castle was rather boring. The only parts that I found interesting were those dealing with the vampire Welstiel and his unwilling sidekick Chane. After reading about them, going back to Magiere was a let down. Welstiel and Chane were so much more intriguing than the Magiere and friends.
Also, the fight scenes were rather gruesome and I mostly just skipped through the descriptions of battles as reading about people hacking at and maiming each other has never appealed to me. Also, I don't like elves and I especially didn't like their long, complicated names that I had no idea how to pronounce. I imagine, though, to those who are familiar with the characters and who have followed the story from the beginning, this book is a vital part of the whole story.

New Words

Hauberkand falchion: A hauberk is an armored vest, usually of chain-mail. A falchion is a short broad slightly convex medieval sword with a sharp point. "In black breeches and a white shirt recently tailored within the city, she had donned her studded leather hauberk and strapped on her falchion."

Mantic: relating to divination; prophetic. "Two seasons past, she had meddled with a mantic ritual to help Magiere track an undead."